The Champions Dinner at The Masters hasn't had haggis served since 1989, when Scotland's Sandy Lyle presided as the 1988 champion. But in recent years the tournament has lost more than just a taste of haggis. It has lost the flavor of a European victory, which during the 1980s and '90s was standard fare.

A repeat performance put Trevor Immelman at the top of the leaderboard during the second round of The Masters on Friday. Immelman started the day as a co-leader with Justin Rose after opening with a 4-under 68. He followed with another 68 to take a one-shot lead. Brandt Snedeker also shot 68 to grab second place while Phil Mickelson was lurking in fourth place, four shots back.

Tiger Woods' first-round score at the Masters was par for the course. By his standards, so was the throng of thousands that followed his every shot Thursday and changed shapes like a giant amoeba as everybody jockeyed to find good spots for a glimpse of golf's superstar.

As flamboyant with his mouth as he is with his multicolored attire, Ian Poulter has always shot from the lip at the risk of exposing himself to ridicule and torment.

The golf world came beating down on his spiked hair, however, after the January edition of the United Kingdom's Golf World hit the stands. So much so that even after he grabbed the early lead Thursday in the 72nd Masters, a round of 2-under 70 highlighted by a hole in one on the 16th hole, Poulter once again addressed comments he made and says were taken out of context about his colleagues.

On a warm, sunny opening day that featured Ian Poulter's hole-in-one, a solid start to Zach Johnson's title defense and Tiger Woods plodding around the course, Rose shot a 4-under 68 that put him atop the leaderboard with Trevor Immelman.

Fred Couples came to the 12th hole in the 1992 Masters with victory hanging in the balance. His tee shot to the fabled, 155-yard, par-3 wound up short, hitting into the bank that slopes toward Rae's Creek. Amazingly, the golf ball hung up on one sprig of grass and stayed dry. He went on to win. Another miracle in Amen Corner.

South African's Retief Goosen feels transported as he drives down Magnolia Lane to The Masters clubhouse. Outside the gates, there is another road to The Masters, a four-lane route called Washington Road. During Masters week, it also is an entirely different place.

Even Tiger Woods can't get the better of the first hole at Augusta National.

When the 72nd Masters opens Thursday, players will begin their quest for a green jacket on one of the toughest, sternest opening-hole tests in all of golf. The uphill, tree-lined 455-yard, par-4 No. 1 is named Tea Olive, but it hardly extends an olive branch.

Temptation tugged at Zach Johnson. In the middle of the 13th fairway on Easter Sunday last year, tied for the lead in the final round of The Masters, the pride of Iowa had 215 yards to the pin on the legendary par-5 that closes the perilous, three-hole stretch known as Amen Corner.

Seven is no longer heaven at Augusta National. Since officials at The Masters decided to beef up the course after Tiger Woods turned the historical layout into mincemeat in 1997, the once relatively straightforward par-4 seventh hole has become a problematical challenge that has altered assumptions and forced amendments to players' game plans.

Amen Corner and The Masters make up the biggest show in golf, often drawing more than 40 million viewers on the telecast of the final two rounds on CBS. Since 1986, The Masters has been the highest-rated golf broadcast, seen live or delayed in 190 countries.

When he watches The Masters telecast this week, particularly the three holes of Amen Corner, banker Collin Howard figures he'll have a feeling of been there, done that. Yet he never has been to Augusta National Golf Club.

The sold-out Masters, often described as the toughest ticket in sports, has a new program this year that will provide free admission to youngsters agea 8-16. Each must be accompanied by the holder of a regular entry badge.

Logic dictates that winning the Grand Slam in golf is unrealistic. Tiger Woods says check the math. The world's No. 1 player has won at least five tournaments in nine of his 13 years on the PGA Tour. By his reasoning, he could certainly win all four majors in the same calendar year, a quest that begins Thursday in The Masters.